Apparatus for soaking pasting plates



3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 20, 1956.

1522212111 Ar J Feb. 10, 1959 R. J. STEHLING 2,872,932

APPARATUS FOR SOAKING PASTING PLATES Filed Jan. 20, 1956 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 TO SOURCE OF HOT DETERGENT SOLUTION UNDER PRESSURE imdpwfrd Ralph 4 7I 5252172119 United States Patent APPARATUS FOR SOAKIN G PASTING PLATES Ralph J. Stehling, Milwaukee, Wis., assignor to The Chas. H. Stehling Company, Milwaukee, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Application January 20, 1956, Serial No. 560,409

2 Claims. (Cl. 134-22) This invention relates to improvements in the method and apparatus for cleansing pasting plates after hides have been removed therefrom.

In tanneries it is customary to paste tanned hides upon large, flat metal plates to facilitate stretching and drying of the skins. These so-called pasting plates are suspended by trolleys from an overhead rail to enable the plates to be easily moved past one or more stretching stations and then into the drying chamber. After drying, of course, the skins are stripped from the pasting plates. Before the plates can be re-used, however, they must be thoroughly cleansed of all dried and crusted paste, and such cleansing of the plates is now customarily performed at a washing station to which the plates are 'delivered while remaining suspended from their overhead rail.

Heretofore, the cleansing of the pasting plates to remove all of the dried paste thereon has been a costly and time consuming process. While the scrubbing apparatus of the copending application of Ralph I. Stehling and Rafael A. Guardado, Serial No. 437,226, filed June 16, 1954, now Patent No. 2,851,711, effected some saving in time in the cleansing of paste from the plates, it nevertheless entailed the use of large amounts of hot water and detergents.

Because of the crusty and wax-like surface characteristicsof the dried paste on the plates, the latter were frequently subjected to a preliminary cleansing operation in an attempt to loosen and wash off some of the paste from the plates before delivery thereof to the scrubbing apparatus. This preliminary washing step was performed at a shower station at which streams of hot strong detergent solution were sprayed upon both faces of the pasting plates from horizontally disposed pipes located at opposite sides of the plate and having a length of about the same length as the plates, namely on the order of about 11% feet. However, whilelthe pasting plates are normally continuously advanced through the scrubbing apparatus, it was necessary to bring the plates to a stop in the shower zone to give the hot detergent solution sprayed upon the plates a chance to penetrate the crusty surface of the paste thereon.

During their subsequent passage through the scrubbing apparatus, the opposite faces of the plates are acted upon by a series of brushes having relatively stiff bristles, while more hot detergent solution is sprayed upon the plates. Though the scrubbing brushes were capable of quite readily removing the paste from those areas of the precleansed plates which were covered by hides, the passage of the plates through the scrubbing apparatus had to be slow enough to assure removal of the thicker layer of paste on those areas of the plates which were outside the outline of the hides previously pasted on theplates.

'- With the conventional method of cleansing pasting plates .described above, it was customary to spray as much as sixty gallons per minute of hot substantially 2,872,932 Patented Feb. 10, 1959 I 2 strong detergent solution upon the plates in the shower zone alone, and anadditional thirty-five gallons per minute of hot detergent solution was sprayed upon the plates in the scrubber.- Obviously, none of this hot liquid detergent could be saved for re-use, with the ia ce result that the cost alone of heating water was a serious are delivered to the scrubbing apparatus, and by which a great saving in hot water and detergent can be effected and the paste may be removed from the plates in a much more efficient manner than .was previously possible.

More specifically, this inventionhas as one of its objects the provision of soaking apparatus in which pasting plates to be cleansed are subjected to a thorough soaking or preliminarycleansing operation just before the plates are advanced through the scrubbing apparatus, without entailing stopping of the plates for such preliminary cleansing, as was necessary in the past.

It is a further object of this invention to provide soaking apparatus of the character described which comprises an upright housing through which the plates are caused to travel just before they enter the scrubbing apparatus, and wherein a hot detergent solution is sprayed upon the plates in the'form of a fine fog-like mist which has the ability to thoroughly adhere to and cover the paste coated surfaces of the plates to thus more readily penetrate and soften the paste-without entailing the spraying of large volumes of hotwater and detergent thereover. I

Still another object of this invention resides in the provision of a soaker unit for use with apparatus for cleansing pasting'plates, which unit is exceptionally compact and therefore achieves a considerable saving in space over that required for the conventional precleansingor shower stall type of precleansing apparatus customarily employed theretofore.

A further object of this invention resides in the provision of a soaker unit of the character described which operates with such a high degree of efiiciency as toenable the vplatesitobe thoroughly cleansed in the scrubbing apparatus without any detergent and with far less hot water than was required previously.

With these and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, this invention resides in the novelmethod and the construction, combination .and arrangement of parts of the apparatus substantially as hereinafter set forth and more particularly defined in the appended claims, it being understood that such changes in the precise embodiment of the hereindisclosed invention may be made as come with the scope of the claims. I a

The accompanying drawings :illustrate one complete example of the physical embodiment of the invention constructed according to the best mode so far devised for the practical application of the principles thereof, and in which:

Figure 1 is aside elevational view of cleansing apparatus for pasting plates incorporating the soaker unit of this invention;

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view of the soaker unit taken through Figure 1 along the plane of the line 2-2;

' further includes a scrubbing unit 6 followed by a bank of squeegees 7. The squeegeesare disposed at the outlet end of the scrubber unit, while the soaker unit is positioned directly ahead of "the scrubber to initially act upon pasting plates 8 to be cleansed.

The scrubbing apparatus and the squeegee mechanism may be of. any conventional type, but, as shown in Fig ure 1, preferablycomprise components like those of the copending application of Ralph J. Stehling and Rafael A. Guardado, Serial No. 437,226, filed June 16, 1954, to which reference may be had for a more complete disclosure of their structure and operation. It is suff cient herein to note that the plates 8 to be cleansed, while suspended by trolleys 10 froman overhead rail 11, are advanced endwise in vertical positions through the scrubbing unit 6 and then past thebank ofsqueegees 7. In the scrubber, laterally opposite banks of oscillating brushes 12 act upon bothsides'ofthe plates while streams of hot water and detergent are usually played thereover to flush away the paste loosened by the brushes. As the plates leave the scrubber, they pass between the laterally opposite banks of squeeges to have substantially all the water removed fromtheir faces.

The pasting plates to be cleansed are advanced through the cleansing apparatus automatically at'a governed rate by a pair of rubber driving wheels 13 which engage the opposite faces of the plates. These driving wheels are of the type shown and described in the aforesaid copending application of Ralph J. Stehling and Rafael A. Guardado, but in the present case, they are mounted ahead of the entrance to the soaker unit 5 rather than directly adjacent to the scrubber. The drive wheels 13 are mounted upon rotatable vertically disposed shafts and are driven at a relatively slow rateiof rotation by an electric motor 14 mounted on the front of the soaker unit and connected with the shafts of the drive wheels through suitable gear reduction and transmission means 15.

Thus, when the pasting plates are brought into the bite of the laterally opposite drive wheels 13, the plates are thereafter propelled with a continuous motion through the cleansing apparatus, passing first'through the soaker unit 5, then the scrubber unit 6- and, finally, past the banks of squeegees 7.

The soaker unit of this invention comprises a narrow upright housing indicated generally by the numeral 17, consisting of a pair of laterally opposite housing sections or chambers 18 high enough to reach to the tops of the suspended plates to be soaked: The housing sections or chambers are mounted upon a common base frame 19 at opposite sides of a common vertical plane lying in the path of travel of the pasting plates as they are advanced endwise invertical positions along the overhead rail 11. The base frame upon which the soaker housing is mounted may be provided by a forward extension of the base structure for the scrubber unit- 6, but preferably comprises a frame separate from the scrubber, as shown. It consists of a pair of angle shaped side rails 20 connected in spaced parallel relationship by cross beams 21 and 22 at the front and rear, respectively, of the soaker housing.

When the housing and base of the soaker are fabricated separately of the scrubber 6, the soaker may be employed with any conventional type of scrubbing apparatus, inasmuch as it functions entirely independently of the scrubber.

Referring to Figures 2 and 3, it will be seen that each of the housing sections or chambers 18 is defined by similar upright front and rear sheet metal panels 23 and 24, respectively, so supported on the. housing, that the walls of each chamber. extend laterally outwardly in convergent relation to oneanother, from locations near tobut spaced. fromthe common medianvertical plane which divides the housing. Thus, as shown best in Figure 4 3, the chambers open laterally toward one another across said median plane.

The convergent or outer upright edge portions of the front and rear walls of each chamber are spaced apart in directions parallel to the common median plane which divides the housing, and are fixed to the inwardly projecting legs of a pair of angles 26 which are joined to the base frame and project upwardly therefrom to form part of the housing supporting structure. The upright inner edge portions of the front panels 23 of each chamber are bent forwardly of the housing as at 27, in divergent relation to one another, to define a funnel-shaped opening 28 in the front of the housing through which plates to be cleansed enter the housing. These forwardly extending edge portions 27 of the front panels are secured to upright angles 29, which also form part of the housing supporting structure.

The upright inner edge portions of the rear panels 24 of the chambers are secured to upright guide plates 30 fixed on the housing and extending rearwardly therefrom at opposite sides of and parallel to the median vertical plane of the housing. Pasting plates emerging from the exit opening in the housing defined by the two plates 30 are guided thereby for proper entrance to and passage through the scrubbing unit 6.

At the top of the soaker unit housing, each of the sections or chambers 18 thereof is closed by a substantially horizontal cover plate 31, while a single plate 32 common to both of the housing sections or chambers, extends laterally across the bottom thereof to provide a catch basin for the unit. The bottom plate, of course, extends entirely across the spaces between the side rails 20 and the cross channels 21 and 22, to which the edges of the bottom plate are welded.

From the description thus far, and particularly from an inspection of Figure 2, it will be apparent that the housing sections or chambers 18 are open at their widest portions which lie adjacent to but are equispaced from the vertical plane along which the pasting plates 8 travel, to permit the plates to pass endwise through the housing.

In order to effect loosening or preliminary cleansing f paste from the opposite faces of the pasting plates passing through the soaker unit 5, and thus facilitate the complete removal of the paste in the scrubbing unit 6, a hot detergent solution from a source thereof (not shown) under pressure, is sprayed upon the opposite faces of the plates. For this purpose, the unit is provided with a number of spray nozzles 34 at each side of the housing, connected in a substantially U-shaped supply duct or header, indicated generally by the numeral 35. The bight portion 36 of the U-shaped duct extends transversely across both housing sections or chambers, nearthe bottom thereof, while the upright branches 37 of the duct extend upwardly from the opposite ends of the bight portion along the opposite lateral sides of the soaker unit housing for nearly the full height thereof. The upper ends of the upright branches 37, of course, are closed by plugs 38, and-they are supported by angle shaped clips 39 joined across the outer flanges of the upright supporting. angles 26 at locations near the top and the bottom of the housing.

Each of the upright branches 37 of the headeris provided with a valve 40 located near its junction with the bight portion 36' of the header, by which the flow of hot detergent solution conducted to two nozzles 34 in each branch 37. may be regulated. The nozzles 34 are so spaced vertically from one another in each of the branchesthat the upper nozzle projects into its adjacent chamber at the upper portion thereof, while the lower nozzle projects into the chamber at an elevation substantially midway between the upper nozzle and the bottom of the chamber.

With this disposition of the nozzles, all of which face inwardly toward the common median planeof thesoaker housing, the upper nozzles 34 of the chambers will cover simplified to a great extent.

the upper one-half of the vertical dimension of the pasting plates, while the lower nozzles cover the'lower one-half of the pasting plates.

One of the most important features of this invention resides in the provision of each of the nozzles 34 with an atomizing jet 42, of a type known commercially as a T jet. These jets are characterized by a narrow vertically disposed slit-like discharge orifice from which hot detergent solution fed to the duct 35 issues in the form of a fog-like mist sprayed out fanwise in the vertical direction, but which is substantially narrow, as viewed in Figure 3. These atomizing jets effect extremely fine dispersal of the cleansing liquor fed into the duct 35, as through a supply pipe 44 leading into one end portion of the bight section 36 of the duct.

Even more important is the factthat the fine detergent which issues from the atomizing jets, because of its mistlike state, has the ability to adhere to the crusty and waxlike surface of dried paste on the faces of the pasting plates, thus enabling the detergent to penetrate and effect loosening and dissolution of at least the surface layer of the paste.

After passing through the soaker unit with the opposite faces of the plates thoroughly coated with the fine detergent mist, the pasting plates enter the scrubbing unit 6 wherein the partially loosened paste thereon is readily and completely removed under the vigorous action of the laterally opposite banks of brushes 12. Water is sprayed onto the plates while they are being brushed, to wash away the paste removed therefrom by the brushes.

Water adhering to the opposite faces of the plates is removed therefrom as the plates issue from the scrubbing unit 6 by the squeegees 7.

Attention is directed to the fact that the opposite sides of the housing, which are defined by the convergent upright edges of the chamber Walls, are open for a space of several inches, and that the nozzles are so mounted that they extend inwardly between the convergent edge portions of the Walls of each housing section, in spaced relation thereto. Since there is no need to provide closures at the remote lateral sides of the housing, adjacent to the spray nozzles 34, the housing structure is While flexible seals may be provided at the inlet and outlet openings of the housing, such seals have been found to be non-essential.

It should also be observed that the front to rear dimension of the soaker unit is but a small fraction of the overall length of a pasting plate and that, when substituted for the conventional shower type of precleansing apparatus formerly used ahead of the scrubbing unit, a great saving in space is effected. The shower" type of preeleansing units, it will be recalled, were customarily of about the same length as the length of the pasting plates so as to accommodate one entire pasting plate at a time therein. 1

By far the most important advantage of the soaker unit of this invention resides in the tremendous economies which it achieves in the amounts of hot water and detergent required to effect efiicient precleansing of the plates, and to facilitate the complete removal of the paste therefrom. In actual practice, it has been found that the soaker unit of this invention requires only about 1% of the amount of hot water required by the shower type of precleansing apparatus, and, of course, only about 1% as much detergent if the solution strength is maintained the same. Specifically, the soaker unit of this invention uses only about gallons of hot Water per hour, having mixed therewith about one ounce of detergent per gallon of water, whereas 50 to 60 gallons of hot water per minute (3,600 gals/hr.) and at least the same proportion of detergent were required with the conventional shower type of soaking apparatus.

While the costs of water and detergent are, in themselves, significant factors, thecost of heating the water to the required high'temperature for soaking is an equally greatitem of expense, and it is here, especially, that the phenomenal savings effected by the soaker of this invention become most remarkable.

Moreover, because of the thorough and etficient soaking achieved by the method of this invention, its use makes possible further savings in the cost of detergents, in that the scrubber unit may be operated with plain hot water (with no detergent) sprayed upon the plates at the rate of about 35 gallons per minute, without detracting from the efiiciency of the scrubbing operation.

From the foregoing description, taken together with the accompanying drawings, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that this invention provides a greatly improved method of cleansing pasting plates, and that the apparatus which this invention provides for carrying out the method features simplicity and compactness while achieving a great saving in cost of hot water and detergent over that previously required to accomplish the same amount of work.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. Apparatus for soaking pasting plates after hides have been removed therefrom, as the plates travel edgewise in vertical positions along a defined path, comprising: conveyor means to carry the plates in vertical positions along said defined path; means forming opposing upright soaking chambers of a height at least equal to the vertical dimension of the plates to be soaked, each of said chambers having an open side facing a vertical plane in said path along which the plates travel, and each of said chambers comprising upright front and rear walls which extend a substantial distance outwardly from locations close to said plane to have their outer vertical edges remote from said plane; a plurality of vertically spaced inwardly facing spray nozzles mounted adjacent to the outer vertical edges of said front and rear walls, each of said nozzles having an atomizing jet facing inwardly into its respective chamber and towards said plane; duct means connected with all of said nozzles for communicating the same with a source of detergent solution under pressure so that such detergent solution issues from said atomizing jets in the form of a fog-like mist to thoroughly coat the opposite faces of a pasting plate passing between the chambers; and a common bottom wall extending across the bottoms of both chambers to serve as a drip basin in which detergent solution which runs down from the walls of said chambers may be collected.

2. In apparatus for soaking pasting plates after hides have been removed therefrom, as the plates travel edgewise in vertical positions along a defined path: means defining similar opposing chambers each having an open side facing but spaced from a vertical plane in said path along which plates travel, said chambers being closed at their tops and bottoms; a U-shaped duct having its bight portion extending transversely across the bottom portions of both chambers and having upright branches remote from said plane; nozzle means in each of said upright branches of the duct projecting inwardly into the chambers, said nozzle means having atomizing jets thereon facing inwardly of the chambers toward said plane, from which cleansing liquor fed to said duct means issues in the form of a fog-like mist to assure thorough coating of both sides of a pasting plate between said chambers with cleansing liquor in a fine dispersed state; and means for connecting said duct means with a source of cleansing liquor under pressure.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,412,979 Sundh Apr. 18, 1922 1,672,061 George June 5, 1928 (Other references on following page) Johnson Apr. 6, 1948 8 Zademach Feb. 13, 1951 Secor Nov. 4, 1952 Gray Feb. 10, 1953 Klein Aug. 10, 1954 Murray Jan. 24, 1956 

